Pat Kelsey, Winthrop

Kelsey backed out of the UMass job after accepting it before heading back to Winthrop. Would he take another job instead? Kelsey played at Elder High School in Cincinnati and would be a great fit close to home. He led the Eagles to a 49-16 record the last two seasons.

Dane Fife, Michigan State assistant

Fife is due for a head coaching job after serving as an assistant coach under Tom Izzo since 2011. Fife is a former Indiana player who had a head coaching stint with IFPW from 2005-11.

Greg Paulus, Ohio State assistant

The former Duke guard has served as an assistant under Thad Matta since 2012 and might be ready to take on that first head coaching job. Paulus should be ready to make the move up.

James Whitford, Ball State head coach

Look at the connections. Whitford served as an assistant and Xavier and Arizona before a four-year stint with Ball State, where he’s won 21 games each of the last two seasons.

Jeff Boals, Stony Brook head coach

Boals is a former top assistant at Ohio State who led Stony Brook to an 18-14 season, including a 12-4 record in conference play, in his first season as a head coach.

Kevin Kuwik, Dayton assistant

Kuwik served as an assistant coach for Dayton the last six seasons and has worked under Thad Matta and Brad Stevens. Kuwik is also known for taking an 18-month leave of absence to serve in Iraq while he was an assistant coach at Ohio University. Allen Griffin and Tom Ostrom also are in-house options.